What's New in the Canvas and CygNet Thin Web Client Help

The Canvas Help includes documentation updates to describe the new features and enhancements contained in the latest Canvas release.

Notes:

The following documentation items have been added, removed, or revised in the Canvas and TWC v1.6 Online Help, released on November 15, 2024. Changes are listed in order of the online help document sections in which they appear.

Thin Web Client v1.6

Canvas Controls

  • Alarm Grid — The following features are now documented:
  • Chart — The following features are now documented:
    • Updated topics to indicate support for Toolbar buttons and Quick range buttons in the CygNet TWC web view.
    • Updated Legend properties to indicate support in TWC (all except Legend location).
    • Added X-Axis known issue: We have observed overlapping date and time labels on a chart's x-axis when displaying a large number of data points in a narrow chart in the CygNet TWC web view.
  • CygNet Grid — The following features are now documented:
    • A point column now supports a grid summary row in TWC.
    • An image column type is now supported. An image column presents a point-state image — a CygNet-aware image that will dynamically change based on the point state of the associated point. A default image is displayed if you configure point-state-aware images and no matching state exists.
    • The Row summary update rate property is Not supported by TWC and is hidden in the Properties pane in Web client mode.
    • Documented changes to sorting and filtering columns in run mode.
    • Text alignment is now supported for all column types in the CygNet TWC web view.
  • DDS Button — Documented a new control used to get and send data group transaction data for a remote device. Must be used in conjunction with the DDS Edit Box and the DDS Text Tool.
  • DDS Edit Box — Documented a new control used to edit data group transaction data for a remote device. Must be used in conjunction with the DDS Button.
  • DDS Text Tool — Documented a new control used to display data group transaction data for a remote device. Must be used in conjunction with the DDS Button.
  • Detail — Documented Date range configuration (including live update support). Clarified that the sparkline on a Detail control will update with live date in both the Canvas Native view and the CygNet TWC web view.
  • Dynagraph — The following features are now documented:
    • Documented the now-revealed context menu options to edit the pumpoff configuration and fluid fill setpoint values for the associated facility. Canvas-specific dialog boxes have been implemented in Canvas v9.7.
    • The Dynagraph control is now supported by the Thin Web Client.
    • New properties have been added to support color configuration of the control's background and foreground elements.
  • Facility Emitter — This new control leverages the facility receiving and sending model in Canvas allowing multi-directional facility linking between controls without script. The Facility Emitter is supported in both the Canvas Native view and the CygNet TWC web view.
  • Image — Removed the Not supported by TWC note for the Enabled (IsEnabled) property, to indicate support when creating screens to be published and viewed in the CygNet TWC web view.
  • Map — Updated to indicate the map is now supported by the Thin Web Client (Image layer only).
    • Hyperlinking is supported to another Canvas screen from an image visual item in both the Canvas Native view and the CygNet TWC web view.
    • Hyperlinking is supported to another Canvas screen from a shape visual item in the Canvas Native view only.

    • The map configuration UI has been updated with an icon Supported by TWC and tooltip (Supported by TWC) to indicate when a property is supported by the TWC.

    • Map providers differ for the Canvas Native view and the CygNet TWC web view. Azure Maps is supported by the TWC.

  • Note Grid — A new type of grid control is added to display notes in your CygNet NOTE service; the Note Grid is supported in both the Canvas Native view and the CygNet TWC web view.
  • Shape — The Shape control is now supported in the CygNet TWC web view. Hyperlinking to other Canvas screens is also now supported in both the Canvas Native view and the CygNet TWC web view.
  • Resizing support in TWC — The Horizontal resize mode and Vertical resize mode properties are now supported for all TWC-supported controls when creating screens to be published and viewed in the CygNet TWC web view. This change supports screen and control resizing when displaying screens on different devices in the CygNet Thin Web Client v1.6.
  • Text Tool — Updated several topics to describe Hyperlinking to other Canvas screens, which is now supported in both the Canvas Native view and the CygNet TWC web view.

Canvas User Interface

  • Updated images and text in Web Settings in Canvas Backstage view:
    • Friendly name— The Friendly name allows you to specify a user-friendly name for the application that differs from the official application name. The friendly name appears on the Application Menu page.
    • Icon — The Icon allows you to include an icon above the user-friendly application on the Application Menu page.Click Open dialog box to access the Select File dialog box. Select the BSS and browse to the folder and icon file you want to use. Click OK to use the file or click Cancel to abort and close the Select File dialog box.

The following documentation items have been added, removed, or revised in the Canvas and TWC v1.4 Online Help, released on April 12, 2024. Changes are listed in order of the online help document sections in which they appear.

Canvas Controls

Canvas User Interface

  • Added clarification about Canvas screen name requirements and TWC application name requirements:
    • Canvas native view file name— A Canvas screen file name for a screen intended to be viewed in the Canvas Native view is limited to the following characters: a-z A-Z 0-9 -._~. No special characters are permitted, other than -._~. Spaces in Canvas screen file names are valid when saving screens for use in the Canvas Native view only.
    • TWC web view file name — A Canvas screen file name for a screen intended to be published and viewed in the CygNet TWC web view is limited to the following characters: a-z A-Z 0-9 -._~. No spaces or special characters are permitted, other than -._~.
    • TWC application name — The TWC application name can only contain letters and numbers. Spaces or special characters are not permitted.

Thin Web Client v1.4

The following documentation items have been added, removed, or revised in the Canvas and TWC v1.2 Online Help, released on December 15, 2023. Changes are listed in order of the online help document sections in which they appear.

Canvas Controls

  • Alarm Grid — The following features are now documented:
  • Button — Background blinking is now supported.
  • Chart — The following features are now documented:
  • CygNet Grid — The following features are now documented:
    • Facility sending — Clarified the Facility sender mode options and Facility sending in the run mode topic. Sending All facilities is now supported in TWC.
    • New grid header and grid background color properties: Header background color, Header text color, Grid background color.
    • A quick chart has been added to the TWC context menu for this control.
    • A scriptless option is now available when double clicking on a cell or a row in a grid. Users can select either a hyperlink navigation mode or run a script. Grid cells can display a different facility from that configured for a grid row. The double-click hyperlink action will pass the cell or row’s facility to other controls on the screen configured to receive it AND to the receiving screen. See Double click mode for more information.
  • Detail — The following features are now documented:
    • The Detail control is now supported by the Thin Web Client.
    • A quick chart has been added to the TWC context menu for this control.
  • Donut — A quick chart has been added to the TWC context menu for this control.
  • Dynagraph — This new control is used to view dynagraph cards on your Canvas screens. It is Not supported by TWC.
  • Image — The following features are now documented:
    • Added a note to clarify that point data will display even if no image is configured.
    • The Size mode property is now supported in TWC.
    • A quick chart has been added to the TWC context menu for this control.
  • Linear Gauges — A quick chart has been added to the TWC context menu for this control.
  • Media Viewer — This new control is used to add videos to your Canvas screens. It is Not supported by TWC.
  • Navigation Button — The following features are now documented:
    • Background blinking is now supported.
    • A quick chart has been added to the TWC context menu for this control.
    • Images are now supported in the TWC for this control.
  • Nested View — Added a Border color (BorderSelfColor) property.
  • Objects — Added a note about objects created for the TWC.
  • SetPoint Button — The following features are now documented:
    • Background blinking is now supported.
    • A quick chart has been added to the TWC context menu for this control.
  • Sparkline — The Sparkline control is now supported in the TWC web view.
  • Tag Chooser — The Tag Chooser now supports a collapsible mode in both Canvas native environment and in the TWC web view.
  • Text Tool — A quick chart has been added to the TWC context menu for this control.
  • UIS Command Button — The following features are now documented:
    • Background blinking is now supported.
    • A quick chart has been added to the TWC context menu for this control.
    • Images are now supported in the TWC for this control.
  • Value Indicator — A quick chart has been added to the TWC context menu for this control.

Canvas User Interface

  • The blink interval used by controls displaying unacknowledged alarms in the TWC view is now read from the global settings file (.gsf) for your Canvas application.

Thin Web Client v1.2

CygNet Reference Packages

  • A CygNet Reference Packages implementation is now available for use with Canvas and the CygNet Thin Web Client. The screens, workflows, and sample data provided in the CygNet Reference Package represent the most current capabilities of Canvas and the CygNet TWC and is offered as an example of how you might implement Canvas and TWC to create a similar set of screens for your operators to visualize enterprise data in the Canvas client view or the browser-based CygNet Thin Web client view. A Reference_Packages.zip is included with the CygNet Thin Web Client v1.2 files and contains the following items:
    • RP Installer.can – Canvas file for installing the CygNet-provided reference package
    • RP Creator - Screens.can – Canvas file for creating a reference package from your own screens
    • RP Creator - Sample Data.can – Canvas file for exporting your own CygNet data and adding the data to a reference package
    • Canvas screens and referenced images – Used by the CygNet-provided reference package
    • Sample data – Used by the CygNet-provided reference package
    • Global settings file (.gsf) – Used by the CygNet-provided reference package for relative facilities relationships
    • TWC.API.Entity.Helper.dll, TWC.CygNetAPI.Shared.dll – Required Canvas assemblies
    • CygNet Reference Packages, Installation Guide and Data Model.

The following documentation items have been added, removed, or revised in the Canvas and TWC v1.0 Online Help, released on July 31, 2023. Changes are listed in order of the online help document sections in which they appear.

Canvas Controls

  • Alarm Grid — The following features are now documented:
    • Alarm toolbar filters — Added a dynamic run-mode filtering option, Alarm toolbar filters (ToolbarFilters), to add custom filters in a toolbar along the top of an alarm grid.
    • SiteService and Facility receiving — Added a Row configuration option, so that you can indicate where the alarm grid is receiving its data. Data can be sourced either by SiteService (received from the screen or the Common Alarm Service (CAS)) or by facilities (received from the screen or from another control on the screen).
  • CygNet Grid — The following features are now documented:
  • Donut — Added a property in the Bounds category, Hide invalid bounds (HideInvalidBounds), to hide the donut's value ring and alarm ranges if any misconfiguration in the value bounds settings is detected. This property allows you to hide the value ring and alarm ranges and show a warning label if invalid value bounds are detected.
  • Linear Gauges — The following features are now documented:
    • Added a property in the Bounds category, Hide invalid bounds (HideInvalidBounds), to hide the linear gauge's value bar and scales (primary and secondary) if any misconfiguration in the value bounds settings is detected. This property allows you to hide the value bar and scales and show a warning label if invalid value bounds are detected.
  • Navigation Button — Updated description for Hyperlink mode.
  • Nested View — Added a Border color (BorderSelfColor) property.
  • Value Indicator — Added a property in the Bounds category, Hide invalid bounds (HideInvalidBounds), to hide the value indicator's value bar, alarm ranges, and marker if any misconfiguration in the value bounds settings is detected. This property allows you to hide the value bar, alarm ranges, and marker and show a warning label if invalid value bounds are detected.
  • UIS Command Button — A new button control, used to send a UIS command without script, is fully documented.

Canvas User Interface

  • Documented the Web Settings in the Canvas backstage view: The Web Settings pages provide the user interface for the CygNet Thin Web Client administrator to interact with the Publishing service, and to create, publish, and monitor TWC applications. Use the Web Settings pages to refresh the connection to the Publishing service, configure all application properties, link applications to Blob folders, publish, force publish, and soft publish applications, and view publishing status as your applications build.

Thin Web Client v1.0

Updated the CygNet online help to support the release of the CygNet Thin Web Client v1.0, including:

Canvas v9.7

Added in CygNet v9.7, April 3, 2023.

Canvas Clients

Canvas Controls

Scripting